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Sir Nicholas Mostyn was a formidable divorce lawyer before he was appointed a judge in London, England in 2010. Nicknamed “Mr. Payout”, he had an illustrious reputation for obtaining large sums of money for his female clients and was among the most sought after barristers for the monied upper class.

Of course, many male clients clamoured for his services and he represented Paul McCartney in his divorce battle with Heather Mills. She sought $125 million dollars but was only awarded $25 million.

He also acted for Lady Diana’s brother, the Earl of Spencer, who later sued Mr. Mostyn claiming that his second wife received $1 million more in a settlement than she deserved because Mostyn failed to advise him that his divorce proceeding would not remain private, as there had been a recent change in the law.

The Earl of Spencer was forced to settle to avoid the fall-out of a public trial. The lawsuit went nowhere.

This week Justice Mostyn was subject to a rare order from the Court of Appeal, removing him from a case he had been assigned.

It is not uncommon to hear clients complain about judges who they perceive are unsympathetic, even biased against them, but it is a rare occasion when an application to remove a judge is granted.

In British Columbia if counsel believes there is evidence to suggest that a judge may be biased against their client, they may bring an application to have the judge removed. However, the tricky part is that the application must be brought before the judge you accuse of bias.

About 99% of the time, the judge will gamely hear the application but dismiss it. These applications are infrequent, however, I remember a case fifteen years ago where I brought such an application. At the time, my legal research indicated that the chances of success were extremely slight and true to form, the application was dismissed.

As for Justice Mostyn, the complaint against him included
the allegation that he had made up his mind against litigant Mr. Mann, who had cancer, had fallen on hard times and lived in social housing. Mrs. Mann brought the matter to court in her attempt to have her ex-husband pay her $2 million she said was owed her as a result of their matrimonial matter, following their separation in 2007.

Justice Mostyn threatened to throw Mr. Mann in prison if he did not pay his ex-wife the funds owed. Mr. Mann’s lawyer also argued that the Justice was generally hostile towards his client throughout the proceedings.

The Court of Appeal judges acceded to the claim against Justice Mostyn. Lady Justice Macur referred to hearings before Judge Mostyn in February and June 2014, describing ‘intemperate judicial dialogues’ showing that Justice Mostyn had made up his mind about Mr Mann’s ability to pay.

She also said: ‘During that time Mostyn J’s frustration is palpable and clearly arises from his obvious belief that Mr. Mann is deliberately and maliciously avoiding his legal and moral responsibilities.’

Did you know that America’s 16th President was a divorce lawyer? I didn’t, but according to the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War of Middle Tennessee, he was.

And who are they? An organization founded to “Preserve the Memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and our ancestors who fought to preserve the Union 1861-1865″.

The Sons of Union hosted a program in Nashville Tennessee in 2012 that explored how Lincoln’s divorce practice impacted who he was as a leader and offered a glimpse of the society he lived in.

Researcher Stacy Pratt McDermott found that between 1837 and 1861 Lincoln and his three law partners handled 131 divorce cases in 17 Illinois county circuit courts. The state of Illinois was one of the first in America to grant divorces, make custody orders and provide alimony for women.

One case in particular reveals Lincoln’s approach to the business of divorce, which he apparently disliked but considered a necessary evil. In Rogers v. Rogers Lincoln was retained to act for Sam Rogers who sought a divorce on the basis of his wife’s desertion and her adultery. Lincoln persuaded his client that he didn’t need to rely on two grounds for divorce and recommended the divorce proceed under the ground of desertion.

The reason Lincoln chose not to pursue a divorce on the basis of adultery was to avoid any unnecessary embarrassment to his client’s wife. His sensitive approach, however, backfired, as his client was ordered to pay $1000.00 in alimony to his wife. Had he also plead adultery, his client would have paid nothing or a nominal amount.

Fortunately for his client Lincoln was able to reverse the alimony ruling and undoubtedly learned a lesson in the process.

Lincoln was not only a great leader and an advocate for the abolition of slavery, but was a sensitive, pragmatic man who practiced law for 25 years. While he handled railroad cases, tax cases and murder cases, his “bread and butter” was divorce law.

Historians now rank him among the top three United States Presidents and his Gettysburg Address on liberty, equality and democracy is one of the most often quoted political speeches.

Did you know that America’s 16th President was a divorce lawyer? I didn’t, but according to the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War of Middle Tennessee, he was.

And who are they? An organization founded to “Preserve the Memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and our ancestors who fought to preserve the Union 1861-1865″.

The Sons of Union are hosting a program in Nashville Tennessee this month that will explore how Lincoln’s divorce practice impacted who he was as a leader and offer a glimpse of the society he lived in.

Researcher Stacy Pratt McDermott found that between 1837 and 1861 Lincoln and his three law partners handled 131 divorce cases in 17 Illinois county circuit courts. The state of Illinois was one of the first in America to grant divorces, make custody orders and provide alimony for women.

One case in particular reveals Lincoln’s approach to the business of divorce, which he apparently disliked but considered a necessary evil. In Rogers v. Rogers Lincoln was retained to act for Sam Rogers who sought a divorce on the basis of his wife’s desertion and her adultery. Lincoln persuaded his client that he didn’t need to rely on two grounds for divorce and recommended the divorce proceed under the ground of desertion.

The reason Lincoln chose not to pursue a divorce on the basis of adultery was to avoid any unnecessary embarrasment to his client’s wife. His sensitive approach, however, backfired, as his client was ordered to pay $1000.00 in alimony to his wife. Had he also plead adultery, his client would have paid nothing or a nominal amount.

Fortunately for his client Lincoln was able to reverse the alimony ruling and undoubtedly learned a lesson in the process.

Lincoln was not only a great leader and an advocate for the abolition of slavery, but was a sensitive, pragmatic man who practiced law for 25 years. While he handled railroad cases, tax cases and murder cases, his “bread and butter” was divorce law.

Historians now rank him among the top three United States Presidents and his Gettysburg Address on liberty, equality and democracy is one of the most often quoted political speeches.